Trump tariffs open rift among top Republicans in Washington

A group of Republican lawmakers and conservative donors has hit out at Donald Trump’s sweeping new tariffs on US trading partners, signalling some unease within the party at the president’s economic strategy.

Trump broke with Republican free-market orthodoxy again on Wednesday, launching a new trade war that sparked a sharp sell-off in equity markets amid fears for the global economy.

Some members of Congress, including former Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell, and wealthy…